Murder probe launched after man stabbed to death in broad daylight on busy Bristol road
A murder investigation has been launched after a man was stabbed to death in broad daylight on a busy Bristol street.
The victim was knifed on Stapleton Road in the east of the city at around 5.40pm on Friday.
Emergency services treated the man at the scene before he was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead later that evening.
Avon and Somerset Police launched a murder investigation and extensive searches of the east Bristol area were carried out on Friday night to locate the offender, with assistance from the National Police Air Service.
One man has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender and is in custody.
Formal identification of the victim is yet to be completed and some members of his family still need to be informed of his death. A forensic post-mortem examination will be carried out this weekend.
Stapleton Road is closed between the train station and Robertson Road while forensics work is carried out.
Bristol Commander Superintendent Mark Runacres said: “Our thoughts and sympathies go out to the loved ones of this man, who will receive support from a specially-trained officer and will be kept updated as our investigation progresses.
“A murder inquiry has been launched and is being led by our Major Crime Investigation Team.
“A large amount of CCTV has already been reviewed to further our understanding of what happened and those efforts are continuing today.”
Mr Runacres continued: “There is no place for violence on Bristol’s streets and we are committed to working with partners around this issue.
“We want the community to understand that we are here to help them.
“We understand such tragic news is hugely distressing and therefore there will be an increased police presence in the area over the coming days with more patrols carried out, not because we’re aware of any increased risk, but because we want to make sure you can approach us to raise any concerns.
“Stapleton Road is a busy place at the best of times, especially early on a Friday evening. We are grateful to those people who have already spoken to police and told us what they saw and we’d urge anyone else with information to please contact us as soon as possible.
“We know there were some people filming in the area too and we’d wish to hear from anyone who has footage that could be relevant to our investigation. Out of respect to the family and friends of the man who has sadly died, we’d please ask no insensitive footage is published on social media.”
Anyone with information is asked to call 101 and quote reference number 5224248976. Alternatively, Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555111.
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